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EXPRESSIONS
 

Posted on Sat, Jan 12, 2008 at 11:32 p.m. EST

 

BEST OF

AUG 2006 - JULy 2007

 

NEWS

 

Video: SGB's Shady Henien Spoke Sensational Speech

 

"Coulter Comments Concerning Liberals Leaving Land!"

 

Slideshow: "Sodexho Serves Recepients the Champion of Diversity Award "

 

Photo: "Circle of Christians come to communicate with Christ at the Cathedral of Learning fountain"

 

Photos: Light Up Night Lights with Liveliness!


SGB ELECTIONS:

 

“Pitt News wants you to believe Shady Henien is the wrong guy for SGB President, but we don't"

 

Photos: “Egyptian-American Ascends to SGB Presidency with INTEGRITY believing in Almighty!"

 

Will Powers of TRUE slate attacks Shady Henien of INTEGRITY slate"

 

GREEK LIFE:

Video: Delta Zeta Deliciously Delivers Lusciously with Lambda Chi Alpha

Video: "Kappa Kappa Gammas Go Groovie Partnering with Pi Kappa Alphas!"

Video:"Delta Delta Delta's Dominate Delta Chi's Circus!"

Video: Chi Omega's Operation Offers Nothin' But a Gangsta Party at Kappa Alpha Psi's Place

Video: "Alpha Delta Pi & Kappa Sigma Sing in School"  

EXPRESSIONS:

 

"Dennis Muttu Delivered Before His Death!"

 

IMPRESSIONS:

 

Photos: “Egyptian-American Ascends to SGB Presidency with INTEGRITY believing in Almighty!"

 

Will Powers of TRUE slate attacks Shady Henien of INTEGRITY slate"

 

“Powers Promotes Preposterous Resolution to be Ratified Regarding Racism!"  

 

"Russia’s renegade attitude alienates and aggravates War on Terror"

 

FEATURE:

 

Slideshow: "Peer PGSIS 2006 Poster Portfolio Presentations! "

 

“Top 25 candy cane responses given by Pitt students eating at Schenley Cafe in 2006!"

 

"If Cocaine were an alien, what it would not want you to know!"

 

EDUCATION:

 

Food and Culture Sample Exam I

 

Nutrition Exam II Sample Questions on Energy Balance, Water Balance, Vitamins, and Minerals 

 

Nutrition Exam I Sample Questions"  

 

Nutrition Exam II Sample Questions on Energy Balance, Water Balance, Vitamins, and Minerals 

 

Nutrition Exam V, Sample II for FinalNutrition Final Sample Exam

"Today Excitingly, Savior's Truth Identify Following Yeshua!"

By Ramesh C.Reddy
Pittsburgh Standard

Saturd
ay, Jan 12, 2008

SCRIPTURE:
“The beginning of the gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God.  It is written in Isaiah the prophet: I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way" "a voice of one calling in the desert, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.” (Mark 1:1-3, NIV)

Observations:
I asked myself who are the CHARACTERS mentioned directly or indirectly in these 3 verses?
1. Jesus Christ, the Son of God
2. Isaiah, the prophet
3. I [God]
4. Messenger
5. Lord

Observations/Interpretations:
I asked myself what are the CLAIMS being made about Jesus Christ?
1. The beginning of the gospel which is about Jesus Christ.
2. Jesus Christ is referred to as Lord.
 
I found it very interesting that the Gospel of Mark starts out with ‘The beginning of the gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God’ and moves right into prophesy. I decided to look at prophesy before looking at what 'The beginning of the gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God' means!

I was reminded of what expert witnesses who are called into court to testify have to do. They give their credentials to why the jury, who are ordinary citizens, should believe what they have to say. After their credentials are given, they testify to what they were called in for.

In this case, in the Gospel of Mark  the readers are reminded about the Old Testament, especially regarding the prophesy given to Isaiah to set up the credentials for the Gospel of Mark. Now the credentials that have been given in Isaiah become a reality in the New Testament as the testimony is given.

Observations:
I asked myself what is written in Isaiah the prophet?
Isaiah, the prophet mentions God’s conversation with Jesus Christ as a prophesy message which the Gospel of Mark reveals. This is evidenced by:
 
"I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way"-- "a voice of one calling in the desert, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.'" (Mark 1:2-3, NIV)

Observations/Interpretations:
I asked myself who the phrases in these verses refer to?
I decided to take a closer look at the above verses:
1. “I will send” refers to God speaking to Jesus Christ.
2. “my messenger” refers to God’s messenger.
3. “ahead of you”  refers to Jesus Christ
4. “who will prepare” refers to messenger
5. “your way” refers to Jesus Christ
6. “a voice of one calling in the desert”  refers to messenger
7. “Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.” refers to Jesus Christ

Point 1:  “I will send” refers to God speaking to Jesus Christ.
I was very excited to know this because it tells me that Jesus Christ existed during the Old Testament too! What we know is that God was speaking to Jesus Christ giving that prophesy to Isaiah.

Point 2: “my messenger” refers to God’s messenger.
Jesus is told that a messenger will come but no name is given.

Point 3: “ahead of you” refers to Jesus Christ.
Jesus is told that this messenger will precede His coming which tells me that Jesus would not come until the messenger foretold by God came first.

Point 4: “who will prepare” refers to messenger.
Jesus is told that this messenger will prepare.

Point 5: “your way” refers to Jesus Christ.
Jesus is told His way will be prepared.

Point 6: “a voice of one calling in the desert” refers to messenger.
Jesus is told this messenger will be 'a voice of one calling in the desert.'

Point 7: “Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.” refers to Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ is referred to as Lord! Throughout the Old Testament only God Almighty, the 'I AM' is referred to as Lord. Now this same title is being given to Jesus speaking of His Deity and Divinity. The name of the messenger is revealed too!

"And so John came, baptizing in the desert region and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. (Mark 1:4, NIV)

The messenger to precede Jesus would be John. He was “a voice of one calling in the desert” which is evidenced by “And so John came, baptizing in the desert region”

(To be continued)

IMPLICATIONS:
I saw important implications for my own life by looking at these verses. The most important thing that stuck out to me was the divinity of Jesus Christ and  prophesy. It made me see how prophesy can validate the beginning about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It also made me see how important the Old Testament is even for Christians if we want to get to know Jesus of the Bible. God spoke to Jesus in the Old Testament through a prophesy revealed to Isaiah. Both Old and New Testament are God's message for all people and not just a select few.

There are those that believe if you are a Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist, Jew, Athiest, Agnostic, etc, that the Bible does not apply to you. But God's Word is Eternal and His message from Genesis to Revelation is for anyone. God gave us His Word so through the message, we can come to Him to have a relationship with Him as we read, study, and meditate upon His Word. All 66 books of the Bible are for anyone to read whether believer or unbeliever.

Yes, each book of the Bible is addressed to a specific people at the time it was written but if it was just for them alone, we would not have Bibles in the 21st century in thousands of languages. We would not even have Wycliffe translators who go to remote parts of Africa, etc to translate the Word of God, so tribes can understand it in their own language.

Jesus said that He did not come for the healthy but for the sick. By sick, Jesus meant spiritually sick. In other words, Jesus came for those who were missing the mark, those separated from God because of their sins, and not for those who think they are righteous already. Jesus' words even apply in this age where Bibles are sent to so many unbelievers so that they may read it and come to a saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ.

One of the ways, I have seen people come to Christ is by reading the Word and hearing the Word. You cannot believe if you don't know what you are believing in.  Believing in itself is the Work of the Holy Spirit and His grace as the Word of God is taken in. So read both the Old Testaments and the New Testaments allowing God's message to speak to you. He will!

When you read God's Word, don't be bound by the idea that you have to only read the King James Version to get the Truth of God's Word.  Those that tell you that King James Version is the only Bible to read and all other versions of the Bibles are wrong, need to be asked:

"Does that mean those who read Bibles in different languages other than in English (KJV) are not actually reading the Word of God?"

In essence that is what they will be saying because they believe KJV version is the only true Word of God.

God's Word is infallible and incorruptible which is inspired by God and useful for teaching, correcting, rebuking, that the man of God maybe thoroughly equipped to do good works regardless of the translation a person is reading.

That needs to be understood to read the Old Testament and New Testament with confidence. Regardless of what language or translation you read the Bible in, you will come to realize that the prophesies in the Old Testament still come true in the New Testament. God's Word is still God's Word and it will bring forth fruit.

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD. "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth  and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it." (Isaiah 55:8-11, NIV)

APPLICATION:
I ask you now dear friend, how seriously do you testify about prophesy?
Dear friends, prophesies in the Bible has always come true and will continue to come true. If you take prophesy seriously, let God’s Word speak to you not only through the New Testament but also through the Old Testament realizing the New Testament makes so much more sense and becomes exciting to read when we realize most of the events that took place in the New Testament were prophesized in the Old Testament revealing why Jesus Christ came to earth!

Prophesy still matters today and the Book of Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Revelations and other books of the Bible have prophesies that have come true in the past and that will come true in the future. The key is that none of them have been proved to be false. Predictions can be true or false but when God gives prophesy it will always come true.

I personally know of an atheist who gave his life to Jesus Christ to be His Lord and Personal Savior because he was shown all the prophesies in the Old Testament about Jesus that were filled in the New Testament.  We were proud to invite him to InterVarsity Christian Fellowship to speak to our students few years ago.

Now he goes around testifying about prophesy. Testifying about prophesy is not ignoring the Gospel for within prophesy the Gospel is revealed too. Isaiah 53 is an example!

Friend, you have the opportunity to study prophesy in the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Word of God is near you and able to transform you. Pick up the Word and read it. Ask the Lord to let it speak to you.

If psychics, tarot cards, crystal balls, etc maybe fascinating to you, they do not have the answers to life. Many times people hear someone predict something about themselves and it plays in their head. Without realizing, they themselves many times make that happen and think wow, he/she told me that it would happen and it did. Now they get more sucked into the occult. Predictions and prophesies are not the same. Predictions don't always come true. Prophesy from God's Word always comes true.

Jesus Christ, the Lord of the Universe knows the plans for you friend and they are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Yes, He does! We need not know what the future holds for us if we take the present as a gift and allow Him to guide us daily.  The future is not a mystery with the Lord. Claim the promises God has for you that you can claim for your future. There are prophesies in the Bible that have never been proven to be false! That is exciting to know for you and I to confidently testify about prophesy. Yes, it is!

Jesus testifies to His love for you based on being born on Christmas day as God-incarnate so one day He could rescue you and deliver you, not just you but all humanity who takes refuge in Him. Even Jesus' birth was prophesized. If you take prophesy seriously, you will come to believe in the Word of God as you ask the Lord to reveal Himself to you.

CALL TO COMMITMENT:

You can do that right now friend! Repent of your sin and confess them to the Lord. Ask the Lord Jesus Christ to cleanse you with His precious cleansing blood to wash you clean. Believe that He rose on the third day to give you life. Acknowledge that He is the Lord of the universe who you and I have the privilege of serving and being His children. This is exciting to know! He will dwell in your heart if you ask Him!

Won’t you come to Jesus this NEW YEAR of 2008 if you do not know Him personally?

Won’t you testify about prophesy and the love of Jesus in your life for He desires to give you a new identity?

You can live your life over. Though the years have gone by and you feel your life looks like its going nowhere, you can still have a new identity and a new start. Maybe you have messed up badly and feel like your life will never change, maybe you have been hurt so badly and feel like it cannot get any worse, maybe you have been stepped on all your life and feel like you cannot get up anymore. Even if you feel your future seems futile, I want you to know there is hope. Not the kind of hope that's wishful thinking but a real inspiring hope.

How many wonderful opportunities you have missed, it's not too late for you to change your life around. If you are discouraged and think, there is no way I can have my life changed around, I want you to know that with Christ all things are possible. Jesus loves you so much more than anyone can love you. We have limits on love based on what others do for us but Christ's love for you is unconditional. For unto us a child was born, unto us a Son was given and His Names are Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace!  If we do so much for those we love and our love is limited, think about how much Jesus will do for you whose love is unlimited. HE LOVES YOU! HE LOVES YOU! HE LOVES YOU!

Whether or not you have a job, a boy or girl friend, family, fame, fun, or fortune, etc that's not what Christ sees in you. He sees you as being so precious and special in His sight! He wants to take care of you. No matter where you have been or what you have done, you can come to the Savior and make Him Lord of your life. He wants to be your Lord and Savior if you ask Him to!  Your age does not matter as the Lord can make an impact in your life. He reaches out to you with His helping hands.

You have a golden opportunity to start this NEW YEAR of  2008  with the Lord Jesus on your side no matter what happened before. Let me assure you, the transformation you will see in your own life. When Christ touches the hearts of those who come to Him, there life will never be the same again, never be the same again. You will have a totally new perspective on life as you spend daily time with Him praying, reading & studying the Bible meditating on its precepts, and being plugged into a Bible believing fellowship of believers. Even as you face the storms of life, the winds cannot shake you for you will have a firm foundation on the  Jesus Christ, the Rock of Ages!

Even in your sufferings and pain, He will strengthen you as He has our own family when our beloved dad and my mom's beloved husband of 37 years passed away before Christmas of 2007.

If you would like to invite Jesus Christ to come and dwell in your heart and make Him a daily part of your life, you can this very moment. You will never be alone. You can claim God's promises for you in the Bible and see them come true, before your eyes, in His wonderful timing. You don't have to wait for a special time to come to the Lord. You can come right now as you pray the prayer below, meaning it in your heart and believing. Yes, you can!

During my dad's illness, my mom and all of us have seen the Lord's wonderful miracles throughout and His grace being imparted upon our dad even before he passed away. Now he is in a better place in Heaven with Christ the Lord who offers His free gift of grace even to you. This means you don't have to earn Salvation but accept it as a gift of His love. Today excitingly, Savior's Truth identify following Yeshua!

"Today Excitingly, Savior's Truth Identify Following Yeshua!” (T.E.S.T.I.F.Y)/"How seriously do you testify about prophesy?”

Prayer:
Dear Lord Jesus, it was prophesized in the Old Testament in the Book of Isaiah that you will come to earth. Thank you for coming to earth for us, to die for our sin on a rugged cross where your blood was shed to save us! Then you came back to life and now sit at the right hand of the Father. There are so many prophesies about you Jesus that are fulfilled in the New Testament that were prophesized in the Old Testament. Thank you Jesus!

And now Lord, my sin has made me dirty on the inside and attacks of Satan have wounded me. I have gone astray and have done my own thing. My sin has separated me from you. You in your Holiness God cannot allow sin to enter your presence so you sent Christ, the Lord to become the bridge for us to be reconciled to you if we believe what Jesus was sent for and what He did.

I do believe Father God for all that Jesus did for me. Jesus, I know  you care for me and laid down your life for me on the cross to give me new life as you shed your blood for me to wash away all my sins. Your Blood became the transfusion for those of us wounded by Satan. I accept the transfusion! Your blood heals all the wounded areas to give us a new life cleansing us of our sin.

I want that new life that you offer so I turn to you now as a sheep that has gone astray and ask for your forgiveness of all my sins! Wash me in your precious cleansing blood. Thank you for washing me in your Blood.

Please come dwell in my heart and save me Jesus. Deliver me Oh Good Shepherd! Thank you for your free gift of grace! I know you can save me when I turn to you and ask you to be my Good Shepherd. I want to hear your voice in my heart as I stay with you. I want you to stay with me Jesus in my heart and make my heart your home so I can always have you as my Good Shepherd with me guiding my path as my God and my Savior. Please fill me with the Holy Spirit and lead me in the right paths when I go the wrong way, leading me to green pastures. I love you Jesus! Thank you for making my heart your home, for living in me Jesus and I will live for you and serve you the rest of the days of my life. Thank you for loving me so much that you were born in a stable in Bethlehem so one day you could become my Good Shepherd.

I acknowledge you as my Lord and Personal Savior believing in my heart.  Thank you for being the Lamb of God. Thank you for being my Lord and Personal Savior and changing me. Thank you for filling me with the Holy Spirit and I believe you who began a good work in me will finish it to completion. I give myself to you, all that I am and ask you to make something of my life. Thank you Jesus so much. Thank you have heard my prayer and answered me. In Your Name I Pray Jesus! Amen!

No matter what you feel in your heart, know that Jesus has come in and resides with you! You are not alone! To make your walk strong with the Lord, spend time in prayer talking to Him as you would to a friend. You don’t need special words to talk to the Lord. Spend time in His Word reading Psalms and turning them into prayer. Next allow God to heal you and speak to you through the Gospel of John or Gospel of Mark before moving on to other Books of the Bible! Slowly, let the Lord show you to which Scriptures He wants you to go to next. It is also important to be part of a body of believers to help you grow in the faith. Find a Bible believing church that preaches the Word of God from Genesis to Revelation proclaiming Jesus Christ our crucified and risen Lord who brings us hope, healing, and help! But beware of churches who do believe in the Word of God completely but there is no freedom in Christ but legalism involved.

As a student, it is not too late to join a fellowship on campus too this blessed New Year of 2008! May the Lord's presence and peace fill you with His love now and forever! Amen!

Feel free to email me at reddy4hisglory2004@yahoo.com if you want to meet to study the Bible, pray with, talk about spiritual issues or whatever is on your mind! My number is 412-720-4579.

"This is my work and I can do it only because Christ's mighty energy is at work within me." (Colossians 1:29, TLB)

Love in Christ,
Ramesh

Express Your View

 

.Click picture to read my dad's memoriam:

' I AM ' Series Archives:

What kind of L.I.G.H.T do you follow? (Dec 13, 07, 10:09 a.m.)

"What kind of B.R.E.A.D do you eat?" (Dec 08, 07, 10:10 a.m.)

"Who is your S.H.E.P.H.E.R.D?" (June 30, 06)

 

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